Author: Seth Barnes

An ezine with a cause

Written by Seth Barnes on August 10, 2007. Posted in Radical Living. No Comments on An ezine with a cause

The guys at our online magazine Wrecked for the Ordinary are committing each month to a new cause. This month, they’re raising awareness and money for orphans in Swaziland....

What gets in the way of hearing God’s call?

Written by Seth Barnes on August 10, 2007. Posted in Listening prayer. 5 Comments on What gets in the way of hearing God’s call?

Perhaps because so much is at stake, hearing God on the question of “What should I be when I grow up?” can be difficult. What gets in the way for you? Here are three...

Young people deserve better

Written by Seth Barnes on August 9, 2007. Posted in Discipling. 4 Comments on Young people deserve better

One of the themes of this blog is that in America we’ve been lulled to sleep by alternative agendas, a set of expectations we’ve come to view as “normal.”...

How to fight the 5 temptations of a pastor

Written by Seth Barnes on August 8, 2007. Posted in Leadership. 2 Comments on How to fight the 5 temptations of a pastor

Yesterday I described the five temptations of a pastor. Because pastors lead our churches, they are targeted by the enemy for destruction. He comes along with temptations that sound...

5 Temptations of a pastor

Written by Seth Barnes on August 7, 2007. Posted in Church. 7 Comments on 5 Temptations of a pastor

The job of pastor is hard enough. Ephesians 4 describes the role of pastor in the context of four other roles so that he can shoulder the weight of leadership with others. Unfortunately,...

Sounding the trumpet for a thirty-day fast

Written by Seth Barnes on August 6, 2007. Posted in Abandon. 1 Comment on Sounding the trumpet for a thirty-day fast

Exactly a year ago, I invited readers of this blog to fast and pray for a generation of young people. This year, we are again calling those who feel that God is calling this generation...

Where hypocrisy comes from

Written by Seth Barnes on August 6, 2007. Posted in Dealing with junk in our lives. 1 Comment on Where hypocrisy comes from

Recently, a blog reader questioned the “orthodoxy” of a quote I mentioned in one of my blogs. To his way of thinking, I was advocating faith without anchoring it in doctrine....

How to love someone with AIDS

Written by Seth Barnes on August 5, 2007. Posted in Abandon. 3 Comments on How to love someone with AIDS

We can understand why people fear AIDS – it’s communicable and deadly. But God loves the world, those with AIDS included. It’s a crime to shun what God so desperately...

Short-term missions in Time magazine

Written by Seth Barnes on August 4, 2007. Posted in Short-term missions. 1 Comment on Short-term missions in Time magazine

Interesting article in Time suggests that the short-term missions movement goes far beyond the Christian realm. A tide of overseas volunteerism is rolling in. The article asks...

The kingdom of God in literature and the arts

Written by Seth Barnes on August 4, 2007. Posted in Kingdom Reality. 5 Comments on The kingdom of God in literature and the arts

Literature and the arts intersect with the Kingdom of God all the time. Fantasy is a genre of literature that is perpetually touching on the Kingdom. Think about just a few titles...

Waking up to the kingdom

Written by Seth Barnes on August 3, 2007. Posted in Kingdom Reality. No Comments on Waking up to the kingdom

The Kingdom was Jesus’ favorite subject, but one you rarely hear preached from American pulpits. Adam lost it, and Jesus came to give the enemy notice that we, the people of...

A temporary human experience

Written by Seth Barnes on August 2, 2007. Posted in Kingdom Reality. 4 Comments on A temporary human experience

We are not human beings having a temporary spiritual experience. We are spiritual beings having a temporary human experience. We need to wake up to reality. We need to switch perspectives,...

You were made for greatness

Written by Seth Barnes on August 1, 2007. Posted in Reaching Your Destiny. 4 Comments on You were made for greatness

After his ordeal in the ocean, Jonah engaged God in a heated argument. Jonah dreamed a small dream of comfort and self-preservation. All he wanted to do was sit under the shade of...

We’ve passed the great commission torch

Written by Seth Barnes on July 31, 2007. Posted in Mobilization. 3 Comments on We’ve passed the great commission torch

1 Chronicles 12:32: “Men of Issachar, who understood the times and knew what Israel should do.” What do we know about our times? Just 30 years ago, the American Church...

Best weight loss plan ever!

Written by Seth Barnes on July 30, 2007. Posted in Culture and Faith. 3 Comments on Best weight loss plan ever!

I got back from a vacation last week- a time of eating too much great food – and saw this provocative title of a CNN article: “Incredible Shrinking Couple Loses 580 pounds.” The...

A fresh vision for the church

Written by Seth Barnes on July 29, 2007. Posted in Church. 2 Comments on A fresh vision for the church

Ron Walborn is a friend. He comes to AIM and teaches our missionaries how to hear the voice of the Lord and engage other cultures with the true Gospel. He’s also the...

Leaders create unified teams

Written by Seth Barnes on July 28, 2007. Posted in Leadership. 6 Comments on Leaders create unified teams

“…so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then…” (Eph....

What do you say to someone in pain?

Written by Seth Barnes on July 27, 2007. Posted in Comfort and Pain. 10 Comments on What do you say to someone in pain?

Earlier this month, I posted What do you do when God is silent? and asked for your participation to help give Monica some good advice during a tough time for her. Just a few days...

Conquering nightmares

Written by Seth Barnes on July 26, 2007. Posted in Prayer. 1 Comment on Conquering nightmares

We’ve been talking about dreams in the last 3 blogs – I had the worst nightmare recently. I’m not into guns, but somehow I got a rifle. I was trying to figure...

How to pursue a dream & find a call

Written by Seth Barnes on July 25, 2007. Posted in Dreaming. 5 Comments on How to pursue a dream & find a call

In the last two blogs, I’ve talked about doing your dream rather building a career. Bob Kunkle illustrates my point perfectly. This is one of my best stories ever. As long...

Building your career vs. doing your dream (pt 2)

Written by Seth Barnes on July 24, 2007. Posted in Dreaming. 13 Comments on Building your career vs. doing your dream (pt 2)

Continued from Building your career vs. doing your dream (pt. 1): Stop for a second and look at the big picture. What you really want to do is not to build a career so much as you...

Building your career vs. doing your dream (pt. 1)

Written by Seth Barnes on July 23, 2007. Posted in Dreaming. 12 Comments on Building your career vs. doing your dream (pt. 1)

I write a lot about faith – about how you have to do your dream. Saturday’s blog recounted how I did my dream in Swaziland despite innumerable obstacles. Sadly, in our...

Looking for the ghost of Ted Danson

Written by Seth Barnes on July 22, 2007. Posted in Spiritual Formation. 2 Comments on Looking for the ghost of Ted Danson

My sister Christy spotted Ted Danson in the lobby of the Stanley Hotel this past week and I couldn’t help wondering whether he’d pop up somewhere thereafter. The occasion...

How Swaziland stretched my faith to the limit

Written by Seth Barnes on July 21, 2007. Posted in Eswatini / Swaziland. 3 Comments on How Swaziland stretched my faith to the limit

Nothing made sense about interrupting my life to do a massive project in Swaziland in the summer of 2004 except this: if you wanted to show the world that the Church is alive...